Second Life
by blucross
Summary: The war is over; Voldemort's dead. But so is Harry. With fatal wounds, Harry dies, only to wake up as a toddler-back in 1978 with the Marauders! How will Hogwarts deal with their newest resident?
1. Chapter 1

_I was bored, and my internet wasn't working… So here you go!_

_Summary: _

_The was is over. Voldemort is dead; but not without a price. Suffering from fatal wounds, Harry knows there is no chance of him surviving; that is, until he's sent back to his parents 7th__ year- 1978. But there's a catch: he's fifteen months old! With the mental capacity of a eighteen-year old, fifteen-month-old Harry is raised by the Marauders along with one Lily Evans. How will Hogwarts deal with this new addition?_

_Legend_

"_Speaking"_

'_Thoughts'_

"_Parslemouth"_

0o0-0o0-0o0

_Chapter One_

It was finally over; Voldemort was dead, ending the second war. Harry could've laughed at the irony the situation presented him with; he had finally killed Voldemort, but he was dying himself, the wounds from the Dark Spells used by Voldemort taking their toll on him. Funnily enough, Harry wasn't all that surprised; when he started this last battle with Voldemort, he knew there were chances that he might not make it out alive.

'At least I'm taking Voldemort down with me,' Harry thought to himself, slightly amused. His breath becoming shallower with each breath, Harry knew it would be minutes before he passed on.

Smiling, Harry brought himself to his feet, ignoring the immense pain that came with the simple yet arduous task. Taking small steps, The boy-who-lived slowly made his way to his best friends; Hermione, though hit with a couple of bone-breaking curses, was seemingly well off- she had probably taken potions given to her by Poppy, who he could see going around to mend people.

Ron looked a little worse for wear; he had cuts, bruises and lacerations all over his body; he most likely avoided Poppy in favor of checking up on Hermione.

"Harry!" Hermione cried with relief as she saw him hobbling over to them. She rushed over to him with Ron right behind her.

Harry smiled weakly at them; he felt slightly guilty that these would be the last few minutes that they would spend with each other, not that they knew that. He wasn't planning on telling them either.

"Are you alright, mate?" Ron asked, a relieved smile on his face.

"Yeah," Harry lied, "I'm doing alright." A tired smile appeared on his face to convince them; sometimes he was glad to be such a good actor.

"Well, we'll have Poppy look over you when she's done with the more critical patients." Hermione said in her ever motherly-voice.

Harry smiled, a truer one this time. He would really miss his friends when he died.

The three chatted, though Harry mainly nodded and shrugged. Ron and Hermione merely took that to be because he was tired. But that wasn't it at all; he was starting to lose his hearing, and black spots started appearing in his eyes.

Shaking his head, Harry was determined to remain alive for as long as he could.

The conversation had gone in the direction of garden gnomes- though Harry didn't know when they had approached the subject- and Harry suddenly felt nauseous. Aiming away from his friends, Harry puked up what he thought to be his breakfast. But it wasn't that. It was blood.

"Oh my God! Harry!" Hermione shrieked loudly, garnering the attention of those who were still up and about. Seeing Thiokol of blood right in front of Harry, they put two and two together. In an instant, Harry was surrounded by familiar faces. Faces that he son wouldn't see.

"Ron…'Mione…" Harry called out, his voice raspy and weak. He knew that this was it; he needed to say goodbye before he left for good.

"Harry! Come on, stay with us!" Hermione exclaimed in a panicked and worried voice. Harry could faintly see the worry on Hermione's face and the horror-struck realization that his best mate came to.

"Harry! You can't die on us. Not now!" Ron cried, his voice going higher.

"It was…fun…" Harry said, the blood that pooled up in his mouth coming out as he spoke. And with those final words, Harry Potter knew no more.

0o0-0o0-0o0

When Harry woke up again, his sight was blurry. Then the action of what he just did jolted through his mind. 'I'm alive?' He thought confused as to how he could be alive. But he felt his heart beating, and he was ecstatic. 'I'm alive!' Blinking again, Harry wanted to see exactly where he was; years of having to watch his back so that he wouldn't get killed had him always checking his surroundings. This wasn't about to change.

Looking around, Harry noticed that things looked a lot bigger than they should be. Also, the place he was resting had little bars just like a crib…Looking down at his hand, Harry saw how small it was.

'Bloody hell,' He thought to himself, 'I've become a toddler. Is that the token for being alive?' He wondered to himself before hearing the door- which he believed to be behind his crib- opened, and he heard voices arguing.

"I tell you, he just appeared on my bed all of a sudden!" One voice-a male's- exclaimed. It sounded extremely familiar to Harry, though he couldn't place it.

"But he looks so much like you Prongs!" A voice, who Harry knew by heart, argued back. Harry almost started crying there. Sirius was alive. But how was that possible? He was supposed to have died when he was pushed through the veil by Bellatrix Lestrange. How could he be alive.

"How do you explain where he comes from then! He's fifteen months old, by the looks of it, and I'm pretty sure I haven't made anyone pregnant!" The other voice, identified as 'Prongs', yelled back.

"Now now you two," said an equally familiar, albeit younger, voice. "If you two don't quiet down, you'll wake him up. Do you want that to happen?"

"Sorry Moony," the two boys apologized, and by the sounds of their voices, they probably were embarrassed.

Harry took this as his time to wake up in front of the boys, as he had had his eyes closed to make them believe he was asleep.

Starting to move a little, Harry yawned, gaining the attention of the three boys.

"Look," said Sirius excitedly, "he's waking up!" The footsteps of the three boys came closer to his crib.

Harry rubbed his eyes with one of his little hands, knowing this to be cute as he had watched girls go gaga over little toddlers who did it.

"Aww, he's so cute," 'Prongs' said, sounding an awful lot like those girls wh fawn over little kids.

"You're acting like a girl, Prongs," Sirius said in what sounded like a teasing tone.

Taking a closer look at the three boys, Harry's eyes came to rest on the one that belonged to 'Prongs'. With a start, he realized that 'Prongs' was his father!

Not showing an outward reaction, Harry looked at the three teenage boys who appeared to be sixteen to seventeen years old. He could see what people meant when they said that he looked exactly like his father only with his mother's eyes.

Wanting to get out of the crib, he raised his short arms up in Remus' direction and said "Up!"

Looking surprised, Remus hesitated before picking Harry up gently. Harry immediately curled up against the teen's firm chest, putting his head in the crook of Remus' shoulder. After making himself comfortable, Harry made sure he had a firm grip on Remus' black robes before falling asleep again. For once in a long time, Harry fell asleep feeling safe.

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And there ya go! Please review!


	2. Chapter 2

Hi all! Wowza, this story turned out to be a lot more popular than I thought, which makes me really happy. Thanks to those who reviewed: SabakuMoon, Kiri-chan 'n' Kimi-chan, CarribeanTrinidadian, kperscy, Werewolf Starr and Silver Ame Tsukino. Once again, it is very appreciated.

Now, onward with the story!

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Legend

"Speaking"

'Thoughts'

"_Parselmouth"_

0o0-0o0-0o0

Remus smiled gently at the small child in his arms; he was adorable. And as he held the child, he found that he had a strange protectiveness of the toddler, as did his Moony.

With a quick check at the clock, Remus found it time to head down to dinner. Looking at his fellow Marauders, he knew that they were going over the same problem as him: should they bring the boy with them to dinner? It was obvious that they shouldn't leave him alone or with someone of the staff that he didn't know. But what would the rest of the school say if they saw the child in Remus' arms?

"I say we take him," Sirius said with seriousness (no pun intended). "I don't think it would be a good idea to leave the pup alone with someone he doesn't know," Sirius continued, sounding, for once, logical. "Granted, he may have just appeared in front of us, but at least he's familiar with us. If we just dump him with someone, say Madam Pompfrey, we don't know how he would react; when he appeared in front off us, he had a very strong aura, indicating the power he has. Do we really want to risk the chance that he'd hurt someone?"

When Sirius finished, he looked slightly affronted at his tow compatriots' gob-smacked expressions.

"What?" He asked, irritated. "I can be logical when I want to be." Sirius sniffed, crossing his arms over his chest, a small pout on his face.

"Well ya could've fooled me, Padfoot," James said, a teasing grin on his face. Sirius growled and lunged for James, who, when he had seen the look on his best mate's face, began running. The two ran out of the room- a guest quarters room, kindly provided by the Headmaster- and down the corridor, obviously heading for the Great Hall.

Sighing, Remus made sure he had a firm grip on the toddler in his left arm and headed down to the Great Hall, at a much more relaxed and graceful gait.

Walking down the hallways, the portraits commented on how cute the toddler in his arms was, and Remus had to admit, once again, that he was cute, especially when asleep. Though for some strange reason, he had the feeling that the child in his arms was a handful when awake…

Reaching the doors to the Great Hall, Remus hesitated slightly before heading in, moving towards the Gryffindor table. As soon as he stepped through the doors, he could hear the whisperings, thanks to Moony.

"Oh my gosh! Look at the child; he's so cute!"

"Where did he come from?"

"Why is he with Remus?"

"Do you reckon he's the father?"

Questions such as these were being spread through the houses- even the Slytherins, who were indeed curious as to why there was a child in the boy's arms.

Taking a seat next to James, who was sitting across from Sirius, he began to serve himself food agilely, as if having a toddler in his lap was nothing new.

"Wow Moony," James commented after taking a bite of turkey, "you're like a pro at this." Sirius, who had his mouth stuffed with food, nodded in agreement.

Remus just chuckled before going back to his own food, making sure not to jostle the toddler too much.

Dinner passed by amiably, with the Marauders (Peter coming in five minutes after Remus) chatting about the classes they were going to be taking this year. It was around dessert when Remus noticed his little charge beginning to wake up.

Smiling gently, Remus said to the sleepy toddler, "And how are you sleepyhead?"

At first, the rest of the Marauders were confused at what Remus had said, but then they too noticed that the bundle in Remus' lap had began to move.

"Sweepy," The toddler said, using his hand to rub the sleep out of his eyes.

Remus laughed lightly. "I can see that," he said amusedly. "Are you hungry?"

The little boy nodded, now looking at the table in front of his with a stunningly

Brilliant gaze of emerald green.

"Do you want anything from the table?" Remus asked, seeing the toddler looking at the table.

"Dat!" The toddler exclaimed, pointing to the plate of treacle tarts that were in front of James. Bemusedly, Remus took one from the plate in front of James, said person looking incredibly sad over a single tart.

"Here you go, cub," Remus said, handing the toddler the treacle tart, unaware of the fact he had called the boy 'cub'.

Munching on the tart happily, the toddler swallowed the bite in his mouth, and Remus gave him a goblet filled with pumpkin juice to swallow any remaining chunks.

Satisfied, Remus watched as the toddler went for some of the other desserts on the table, such as the chocolate chip cookies, which the toddler had eaten a numerable amount of, slices of fruit- cantaloupe, apples- and had even taken more of the treacle tarts, much to the dismay of one James Potter.

When it seemed that the toddler had had his fill- he was leaning against Remus' chest contentedly, Remus started to ask questions.

"Well, now that you're nice and full, do you think you can tell me your name?" Remus asked in a gentle voice, not wanting to scare the toddler. Seeing a look of confusion and slight distrust- which gave Remus a pang in his heart for some reason- he introduced himself. "I'm Moony," Remus said, pointing to himself.

"Me Hawwy," The toddler, now identified as Harry, chirped back in reply, making Remus smile in happiness.

"Well Harry, its very nice to meet you," Remus said. Harry giggled, grabbing onto one of Remus' fingers-seeing as how his hands were- and shook it.

From either sides of the table, Remus could hear the girls cooing and squealing in delight over how cute Harry was.

"Hey! Aren't you going to introduce us Moony?" Sirius asked, an expectant look on his face.

"I don't know," Remus said with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "I'm not sure you two would be responsible enough to know him. You are far too immature."

"I resent that!" James cried indignantly, a look of outrage on his face. "Don't compare me to him!"

"Oy! That's totally uncool Moony. Come on!" Sirius whined.

"Hmm," Remus said, looking as though he were in thought. He turned to Harry. "What do you think Harry? Should they get to know you?

Harry put on a pensive expression, which made Remus smile. Remus watched as Harry looked suspiciously at the other two marauders, who had hopeful expressions on their faces. After what seemed like a long while, Harry nodded his head to Remus, who grinned happily.

"Great!" He exclaimed, turning Harry in his lap so he could get a better view of both Marauders. "Right then. Harry, the boy with the birds nest for hair is James."

"Hey ya kiddo," James said with a smile, sticking his tongue out at Remus for the hair comment, "I'm James, but you can call me Prongs too." A small grin on Harry's part assured Remus that he was fine with James, so he moved on to Sirius next.

"And this," Remus gestured to Sirius, who was bouncing in his seat excitedly, "is Sirius. Although you'll never catch him being that."

Sirius rolled his eyes at the lame joke produced by Remus, but introduced himself to Harry.

"Hey there pup, I'm Sirius," A grin appeared on his face. "Hey Moony, I bet he could be a future Marauder."

"Oh stop that Sirius; he shouldn't be involved so young," Remus scolded, being the down-to-earth person in the group.

"I completely agree with Remus." A voice came in, and the group of Marauders- and Harry- looked over towards the new voice.

0o0-0o0-0o0

Harry was enjoying himself; ever since Sirius had died, he and Remus had become closer. He was happy to see his surrogate Uncle much healthier than he had been in the future. Plus, he was able to see what his father was like, and Sirius, too!

He was amused by the antics of the three marauders, enjoying the attention they gave him. Normally, he wouldn't want the attention he was getting from anyone, sick of the spotlight he had received as the Boy-Who-Lived. But, this was different; he was getting attention from the people he had wanted most in the world to be with. Currently, he couldn't remember any other time where he had been happier than this- there just wasn't.

Being introduced to the Sirius and James the way he had had made Harry laugh inwardly. Now, while he didn't know his father at all, he did know Sirius, and the way he had acted then was pretty much the same way as in the future- albeit younger and not slightly insane from the years in Azkaban.

Now, listening to them talk, he was content; he even laughed inwardly when Sirius said he would be the next marauder.

"Oh stop that Sirius; he shouldn't be involved so young," Remus scolded, being the down-to-earth person in the group. Ah, good old Remus, Harry thought, the only sensible one in the group.

"I completely agree with Remus." A voice came in, and the group of Marauders- and Harry- looked over towards the new voice. Harry looked over to the source of the new and incredibly familiar female voice. Said owner had beautiful auburn hair that gracefully fell over her shoulders to half-way down her back. But what got him was her eyes; striking green eyes said to look like emeralds, like his eyes. And Harry realized with a whirlwind of emotions who this girl was.

This girl was Lily Evans, his mother.

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Thank you for waiting! I had a power-outage, and so this chappy wasn't able to be published. Please Review! Its just the green button that says 'Review'! It would make me sooo happy.


	3. Chapter 3

Hello all! Welcome back to another chapter of Second Life! So glad y'all are enjoying it! Thank you to those who've reviewed. Please give me more reviews. More reviews equals faster chappies to come out. Makes everyone happy, no? And terribly sorry for not being able to update this as soon as you'd all like.

**12/18/11- Look to AN at end of chappie.**

P.S.- Warning: "accidental magic" may occur. xD

Legend

"Speaking"

'Thoughts'

"_Parselmouth"_

0o0-0o0-0o0

Harry stared at his mother in awe. Sirius and Remus had told stories of how beautiful his mother was, but now he saw what they meant. He idly mused what he would've looked like if he had had auburn hair instead of his father's raven hair.

Looking back up to his unaware mother, he decided that he wanted to be held by her. Granted, it was childish, but he had lacked the small things would do for their children since he had grown up with the Dursley's.

Bringing his short arms up in the direction of Lily, he demanded, "Up! Up!"

Looking at the expression his mother had- one of shock- Harry wondered if demanding to be held by her was a bad decision. But his worries were soon put to rest as a smile came onto the red-head's face as she came forward and picked Harry up from Remus' lap. Knowing that he wouldn't want to leave his mother's arms for a while, Harry grabbed a handful- well, as many as he could, anyways- of treacle tarts before making himself comfy in his mother's arms.

Right off the bat, Harry knew that he wouldn't want to leave here anytime soon; her arms were warm, and she smelled of cinnamon and evergreens, which Harry thought suited her perfectly.

As Lily sat down, she placed Harry sideways so he would be able to see the Marauders and her as well.

Turning his attention to her, with big, green emerald eyes, he smiled a cute toddler smile for her. He could hear the 'awws' and 'oh, how cute!' from the girls around the Gryffindor table, as well as from other tables. Harry sweat-dropped slightly, he guessed that no matter where he went, he'd somehow always be part of the spotlight.

Coming out of his thoughts, Harry started listening to the thoughts of his parents and the Marauders.

"It's amazing how well he took to you, Lily," Harry heard Remus saying as he continued to eat his dinner. "Harry must really like you."

"Is that so?" Lily said with a grin and turned to Harry to ask, "Do you like me Harry?"

"I wike Lily!" Harry exclaimed happily, burrowing in to her side. He could feel the laughter coming from his mother, and he smiled happily. Though he wasn't with his friends, Harry was incredibly happy that he could be here with his parents, smiling, laughing and having fun.

"Oh, come now Sirius," Lily commented, and Harry turned to see his future godfather looking gob smacked. "Is it really so shocking that Harry can like me?"

"Yes, it is," Sirius replied. Then, as mischievous look appeared on his face. "I mean, considering that your hair's brighter than a fire engine, I'm surprised he's not already blind." While this was an exaggeration, it still riled Lily up, and she leaned up against the table to yell at Sirius, forgetting Harry was on her lap.

"Now you listen here…" And so the argument went on, and Harry kept on being squished. It appeared that Remus and James knew that Harry was being squashed, but couldn't get a word in between the two. Finally having enough of being squished, Harry squeezed himself out of Lily's lap, landing by her feet under the table. Waddling his way over to Remus- Harry was really starting to see the disadvantage of being a toddler- he tapped the werewolf's leg.

When said werewolf looked down, Harry put his finger to his lips in the universal sign of 'Shh' with a mischievous look in his eyes. When Remus nodded, Harry went over to his dad's leg, doing the same with him. After making sure that both of them knew to be quiet, Harry crawled through Remus; legs under the bench and began crawling around Gryffindor table to go around the tables near the doors to the Great Hall.

Crawling, Harry remembered that he saw Lucuis and Snape sitting next to each other on the far side of the Slytherin table. Knowing that he really didn't know any other people from the past besides those two (at the moment) Harry decided it would be best if he went to them. Who knows, maybe Snape wouldn't be sp bitter to him since he didn't know who his father was.

When he reached the Slytherin table, he looked back to the table to see that his mother and godfather were still arguing and mentally sighed. He wondered how long it would take for them to notice him missing, seeing as how the Headmaster had already seen him crawling towards Slytherin table, smiling with a twinkle in his eye.

'I wonder how he does that,' Harry thought to himself before he came to the backs of Lucius and Snape. Looking up, he saw Lucius' hair and thought how pretty it looked. Blinking, Harry laughed to himself. It appeared that while he still retained his memories and age in his mind, the physical properties of his toddler body- his eyes, hands, nose, etc.- had an influence over his mind as well. Seeing as how it would be normal for a toddler to be attracted to pretty and shiny things- which just so happened to describe Lucius' hair- Harry reached up and grabbed it. Tugging it lightly, Harry soon garnered the attention of the future head of the Malfoy Family. Lucius had turned to see what had pulled on his hair and looked down into Harry's face.

Raising an eyebrow, Lucius asked in a somewhat bored tone, "Why are you holding onto my hair?"

Harry, for lack of a better explanation, simply replied, "Pwetty," and then smiled at the blonde.

Lucius blinked while other members of the Slytherin House snickered quietly. Shaking his head slightly, Lucius continued, "Is that all?"

Harry thought about it. Was he going to let an opportunity like this go by? No, he didn't think he was. So he did what toddlers did best:

"Up."

Going from a somewhat annoyed expression to a slightly surprised expression, Lucius examined the little toddler in front of him. If he was correct, the boy was the one that Lupin had brought with him to dinner. But what was he doing here at Slytherin table of all places?

"Up." The toddler demanded again. Deciding to humor the boy, Lucius reached down and lifted the boy, bringing him to his lap so that he was facing the table. After staring at the boy, Lucius decided to ask the boy why he was here.

"If I may ask, is there a reason that you're over here rather than with Lupin?" Lucius asked the boy, who looked up at the blonde as the question was heard.

"They loud," Harry replied, "and hurt head." A frown marred the small youth's face as a small glare appeared on his face.

"And who would 'they' be then?" An almost baritone voice asked from next to Lucius. Turning his head slightly, Lucius found it to be Severus'.

"Them," the young boy responded in what seemed to be a drawl, his hand motioning to the arguing duo over at the Gryffindor table. Lucius noted with interest that the tone was very similar to the way Slytherins dealt with Gryffindors.

"Ah," Lucius said as he recognized the two arguing to be Evans and Black. "I can see why they would hurt your head." Severus nodded his agreement as he went back to his dinner. Some of the other Slytherin students would ask questions of the boy from time to time, and the toddler would reply in an astonishing tone for his age.

When dinner was just about to be concluded (it was longer than usual, being the Welcoming Feast) Lucius looked across the Great Hall to view an interesting sight. Evans hair was in hot pink spikes that went straight down the middle of her head, the tips being painted in neon blue. While this was amusing, the sight of Black was even more amusing to the blonde; Black's hair was up in pig-tails, which were now a banana yellow with tips of orange.

An amused smirk came upon Lucius' face as he watched the two Gryffindors freak out over their new hair styles. Looking down to the toddler, he noticed the toddler was smiling and giggling lightly, apparently thinking it was funny as well.

The Slytherins, hearing the giggling noise, looked towards the new addition to their table for that evening and saw the toddler staring straight ahead. Many turned their heads and started snickering at the sight as well; it truly was a sight to see, Lucius noted, though he never would say that out loud. It was a wonder that the two had yet to notice the other's hair style.

That thought put his thought process to a halt; was there a charm upon them not allowing one to see the other's new hair? And who had pulled this prank in the first place? Observing the toddler from the corner of his eyes, Lucius noted the look of satisfaction upon the boy's face. Lucius' eyes narrowed slightly as the wheels began to turn in his head. Could this boy have been responsible for this prank? If that were so, it would be more than just accidental magic. 'I will keep an eye on him for the time being,' Lucius thought to himself, 'for there's much more to this boy than meet's the eye.'

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AN: Well, I know that none of you will forgive me, but my life has been, overall, this equation: School + Homework = No Free Time

Thank God it's Winter Break right now, though!

Please make this lowly Author happy this Holiday Season and send a review. I'd love to know how I'm doing.


	4. Chapter 4

Ermahgerd! Stupid Google and stupid email and stupid me! I profusely apologize for not updating these past few months. Besides school and whatnot, the account I've been using for FF was not connected to my main one, and I couldn't figure out how to get into it! So, as an apology, expect all my stories to have updates, yea? Great!

I would also like to take the time to thank ALL of the people who have favorited/followed my stories. It really does mean a lot to me, and drives me to write more. So, Thank You!

Also, please note that I, unfortunately, do not know the names of the Prefects of each house, and will be making some O.C's here, people. I apologize, but that's that. On the other hand, if you do know, please to drop me a review or message and I'll change it up. I also know that Lucius Malfoy is, in fact, two years ahead of The Marauders at Hogwarts in canon. However, this is not canon; so seventh-year Lucy we will have!

Now, onward with the Story!

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Legend

"Speaking"

'Thoughts'

"_Parselmouth"_

0o0-0o0-0o0

As the students were about to get up and leave, Dumbledore rose, garnering the attention of the students.

"Now that we are all watered and fed," Dumbledore began happily, making some of the students snort, "I would like to ask that the Head Boy and Girl, along with the seventh year Prefects, please stay behind to discuss a matter of importance."

The announcement caused whispers to rise as the students began to create theories as to why the Headmaster would call a meeting on the first night. With mounting intrigue, the students left the Great Hall, the Prefects and Head Boy and Girl staying behind, along with the other professors.

Once all the students, save for those needed, vacated the Great Hall, Dumbledore turned towards the students, who had remained at their tables; James and Lily, Head Boy and Girl respectively, Remus Lupin and Alice Prewett*, prefects, stayed at the Gryffindor table; Roberta Johnson and Matthew Clemmens, the Ravenclaw table; Lucius Malfoy and Selena Moon, the Slytherin table; and Mark Knight and Alexa Stone, Hufflepuff. Dumbledore looked upon them merrily, noting with interest and a slight grin that young Harry was still located at the Slytherin table within the arms of the Malfoy Heir, Lucius Malfoy.

"Thank you all for staying," the Headmaster greeted amiably, "As we all are tired and wish to get on with our lives, I would like to cut straight to the point of this unplanned meeting; as some of you may be aware, we are currently hosting shelter to a guest, one who seems rather young to be at Hogwarts." All eyes went to Harry, who, never liking the spotlight, shrunk at the gazes. "Young Harry here was transported into the Head Students compartment as the Express made its way here; currently, research is being done to find out how, and why, this young man was sent here. I would like to ask of you, as seventh year students, to help raise him while he remains here." Dumbledore paused slightly to let this information sink in.

"I believe it will be good for young Harry to experience life in each House," Dumbledore continued, "and am asking that you each, between the two Prefects of each house, to make a schedule that rotates the care of young Harry every week. Young Harry should never be within the care of each house more than one week in a row, which is why I would like the Head Boy and Girl to be their own rotation. The Professors, as well as myself, will help when needed, but will mainly leave it to your care. Thank you." Dumbledore smiled benignly at the students, and with a nod to them and the Professors, made his way out of the Great Hall. There was a small, somewhat awkward silence in the Hall before someone interrupted it.

"I believe," The slightly drawling voice of Lucius Malfoy spoke, "that, if he is to remain here, then he shall need new clothes." With that, the ice was broken, and the students convened into the antechamber attached to the Great Hall to discuss further, the Professors looking on proud at the cooperation of the students.

When everyone was settled in, Harry still with Lucius, the conversation picked up from where it left off.

"I'll record the schedule, so that a copy can be made for everyone," Lily began, being the instigator of the conversation this time. She took out a piece of parchment and a self-inking quill, ready to begin writing,

"I believe that the first thing that needs to be sorted out is who's gonna take care of the kid first," commented Mark Knight, the male Hufflepuff Prefect.

"A valid point," agreed Selena, the rest of the students agreeing. "Who would like to take care of him first?" There was a small pause, each of the pairs communicating with their respective partners. It was Alexa Stone who made the choice.

"How about James and Lily?" She asked. "As the Head Students, you each have a large room too yourselves, larger than the Prefects' rooms, and you'll be able to ease him into life at Hogwarts without having everyone constantly question you. I don't think he'd appreciate being surrounded by so many students; it may overwhelm him."

"That seems like the right choice," Roberta Johnson, Ravenclaw Prefect, stated. "As Head Boy and Girl, the students wouldn't be able to bother you and Harry, and you could start establishing a routine for him."

"That sounds okay to me," James stated. "How about we take it to a vote? Those against the Head Students taking the first rotation, raise your hand." No one raised their hands.

"All right then, if you would right that down Lils," James said, and Lily nodded, already making the first draft. When the first draft was done, the schedule was as followed:

**Rotation One: Head Students- James Potter, Lily Evans**

**Rotation Two: Ravenclaw Prefects- Matthew Clemmens, Roberta Johnson**

**Rotation Three: Hufflepuff Rotation- Mark Knight, Alexa Stone**

**Rotation Four: Slytherin Prefects- Lucius Malfoy, Selena Moon**

**Rotation Five: Gryffindor Prefects- Remus Lupin, Alice Prewett**

"Does everyone agree with this?" Lily questioned, levitating copies of the schedule to each person. Nods of assent went around the table, no one disagreeing.

"All right then," James brought the group together again, "As Malfoy stated earlier, Harry will need clothes to wear while he's here. Any suggestions?"

"Well, the best place to go to would probably be Madam Malkin's," Remus stated, "There should be two people to go, preferably different gender and from different Houses." The logic was valid, and Lucius Malfoy spoke up.

"I will go, as to pay for his expenses; my family has enough money to afford this, and, upon sending my Father a letter, will be easily approved. It would also provide the opinion of someone raised in the Wizarding World." Malfoy stated.

"In that case," Alice said, "I think Lily would be the best choice for the other person."

"Me?" Lily asked, blinking in surprise.

"Yes," James nodded in agreement, "you'd be perfect for the role Lils. As you were raised in the Muggle world, you have a better understanding of what clothes Harry could rough-house in, and would provide balance to Harry's wardrobe." Surprisingly, Lucius agreed to this.

"Yes, Evans is a wise choice," Lucius agreed, and so the two seventh years made plans to ask permission to go to Diagon Alley on the upcoming Saturday, which was three days from then.

"If no one has anything else to say," Lily commented, "then I suggest we get to bed. It's after someone's bedtime."

All the students turned to Harry, who had lost the battle against the Sandman long ago. It was also a surprise for some of the students to see a warm expression on the face of the Malfoy Heir, one he was unconsciously sending the boy.

"Very well," Lucius agreed quietly, handing over the sleeping toddler to James, whose arms wrapped securely against the little bundle that had created a stir at Hogwarts. The Prefects and Head Students said their good nights, heading to their respective rooms. Lily and James, who had the first shift, began walking towards the Head Students' rooms, the entrance under the main staircase on the ground floor of Hogwarts. Not known to most, the Head Students' rooms had been under the staircase for as long as the Head Boy-Girl system had been set up. The set-up was a line of defense against attackers, seeing as how most would attempt to attack the front doors first, allowing the Head Boy and Girl to defend the student at a moment's notice.

Arriving at the door-sized painting of a door, James spoke the password.

"Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus," James recited, grinning as the door-portrait silently swung open. James and Lily, with a sleeping Harry in tow, stepped through the portrait and into the hallway, the door sliding closed as soon as Lily was fully inside. The hallway, filled with portraits if former Head Boys and Girls, were dozing slightly, opening their eyes as Lily, James and Harry passed by, their faces filled with curiosity at the sight of the sleeping toddler.

The three made their way down to the end of the hallway, where the hall ended with a simple yet ornate door made out of a varnished oak wood, and the handle a curved yet dull silver. Opening it for her boyfriend, Lily opened the door, reciting the password for the second door-painting.

"Dominus," Lily said, and the door-portrait swung open, revealing a circular room that was darkened, save for the candles placed strategically around the room.

"If you'll make the crib, James," Lily began, heading over to a door on the right, "then Harry can sleep in my room tonight." James nodded his assent, handing Harry over to Lily as he made a semi-permanent crib for his new charge to sleep in, including a soft, but warm blanket that had the Hogwarts crest on it.

Lily smiled at James' handiwork, switching Harry into a pair of pajamas that had little snitches flying around before laying him down softly, James pulling the blanket over the sleeping toddler.

0o0-0o0-0o0

And there you have it!

*There is much debate on Alice's last name, apparently, before she married Frank. From what I read on the Harry Potter Wiki for Alice Longbottom, it was said that her last name might've been Fortescue, which is pretty cool, but I'm not sure, so I'm sticking with Pretwett.

Please review if you love toddler Harry!


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey everybody… Yeah, never mind, lol. Ya'all see Daniel Radcliffe at the Oscars (if you watched them)? Yeah, that was great…**

**!PLEASE READ! Ok, so I know I didn't mention Peter last night, but Harry did meet him last night; he came over to say hi to the lot of them and was introduced to Harry. For most of the Welcoming Feast, though, Peter spent it with his nameless girlfriend. I don't know too much about that in regards to Peter.**

Anywho, Onward with the Story!

0o0-0o0-0o0

Legend

"Speaking"

'Thoughts'

"_Parselmouth"_

0o0-0o0-0o0

The next morning, with Harry on her hip, Lily made her way down to the Great Hall for breakfast. There were whispers as she entered the hall, but she made no mind to them as she walked towards the Gryffindor table, smiling a little as Harry kept playing with her hair. She could hear the cooing of the other girls and was having a hard time not doing so herself; Harry was an adorable toddler, after all. Whoever his parents were must be missing him very much.

As she sat down at her house table, she quietly asked for a booster seat for Harry; that way, he'd be able to move around and play a little more with his food. A Gryffindor red booster seat appeared on the bench next to her, and she smiled, placing Harry in it after she had gotten him to let go of her hair. Lily watched as Harry maneuvered around his new throne, and laughed silently as he nodded to himself in acceptance of the booster seat.

Piling food on her plate, Lily placed a bowl of oatmeal in front of Harry, along with small pieces of fruit and watched as he began to feed himself, albeit messily. Satisfied that more of the food was going into his mouth than the table, Lily concentrated on her own meal, noting that Professor McGonagall would soon be by to pass out their schedules. She wondered if theirs would be altered to fill in the needs of young Harry. Lily made another note in her head about that, making sure to ask the other Prefects what their schedules were.

Just then, to her slight surprise, she saw James walk in, looking exactly as Head Boy should: tie straight at tight, shirt tucked in and robe on without any creases. He even had his badge on.

"What a pleasant surprise to see you up this early, James," Lily commented, albeit with a smile. James smiled back at her as he sat down, ruffling Harry's head with a 'hey kiddo' as he piled his own breakfast on his plate. "What's the occasion?"

"Well," he said, "I realized that being asked to take care of Harry is a big responsibility and decided that if I was going to be responsible for Harry then I better start being responsible with my other duties as well." James had a smile on his face as he was talking and wiped some oatmeal away from Harry's face with a napkin.

Lily sat there, stunned that he, James Potter, Lord of Pranks (not that she'd ever tell him), had decided to get responsible. A smile grew on her face as James looked at her with what she believed to be a slightly more mature look.

"I'm glad," Lily replied truthfully before going back to her breakfast, not noticing the dazed look on James' face as she did so.

0o0-0o0-0o0

When Harry woke up that morning, he was sleeping in a well-made crib for children his age. Knowing that his parents were the ones who had taken charge of him that night- he had fallen asleep somewhere after it was decided who would look after him when- he figured it was his father who had transfigured the crib. Looking at the clock on Lily's nightstand- it was only a foot or two away from where he was, he reckoned- and saw that it was only four-thirty in the morning.

'Bah,' Harry thought to himself, 'it's too early to wake up.' And with that thought in mind, Harry fell asleep.

It was what seemed only a few minutes later that Lily was quietly walking around the bedroom, getting her things together. Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, Harry glanced at the clock: it was a 7:15, and, if he was correct, classes didn't start until nine. Knowing Hermione, who, if Sirius and Remus were correct, was pretty similar to Lily, she was awake at this hour so that she'd be able to properly wake up, eat breakfast at a relaxed pace and possibly get a little more studying in before classes started for the day.

Harry decided that now was a good time to tell her that he was awake; he sat up, rubbing his eyes, and yawning (though that was involuntary). Lily, when she saw him, smiled brightly at him.

"Good morning," She greeted brightly, albeit softly. "Did you sleep well?" She asked, coming over to remove him from the crib.

Harry nodded, thankful for her quieter tone of voice. Over the years he had developed a strong disliking of waking up to loud noises; it had always been there, no thanks to the Dursleys, but it had worsened because all the boys in his dorm snored. Loudly. Oft times he would have to put up a silencing charm so that he could go to sleep, and when he forgot, he woke up the next morning in a foul mood.

"I was planning on waking you up in another fifteen minutes, but since you're awake already, we'll head to the Great Hall for breakfast, okay?" Lily told him the plan and he nodded, feeling quite satisfied at his current position; Lily was holding him securely, and she was nice and warm, which was good considering the fact that he was still a little sleepy.

To keep himself awake until he and his mum had reached the Great Hall, he took a piece of Lily's hair to examine. It was quite soft, he noted, and smelled like cinnamon. He thought cinnamon was a good smell on her, and he smiled happily as he held onto her hair. He knew it was childish, but he didn't care; he was a toddler for Merlin's sake!

When he and Lily arrived at the Gryffindor table, he heard Lily quietly ask for a booster seat for him. Still holding onto her hair, he watched curiously as a Gryffindor red booster seat had appeared in front of him. Lily reached up and gently pried his hands off of her hair before placing him in the seat.

Harry moved around the seat a bit before smiling to himself. Despite how it looked, it was quite comfortable, and it allowed him access to his food without having to reach too far for it. With that, he waited as Lily places some oatmeal and fruit in front of him. It was a good choice; it was what he would have put in front of a kid for breakfast, anyways. For the most part, he was able to get most of the food into his mouth, which was good, considering the fact that he was only two years old. Physically, that is.

After a little while, he saw his dad walk in, looking the part of Head Boy. Glancing at the Head Table, he saw some of the Professors looking on curiously; they too knew that James hardly got up this early, especially on the first day of classes.

"What a pleasant surprise to see you up this early, James," Harry heard Lily comment, though he could see she had a smile on her face. James smiled back at her as he sat down, and Harry got his hair ruffled as James greeted him with a 'hey kiddo' before he made his own plate of food. "What's the occasion?"

"Well," James said, "I realized that being asked to take care of Harry is a big responsibility and decided that if I was going to be responsible for Harry then I better start being responsible with my other duties as well." James had a smile on his face as he was talking and wiped some oatmeal away from Harry's face with a napkin.

Outwardly, Harry paid no mind to James as the Head Boy wiped his face, but on the inside he was feeling warm and fuzzy. Harry could hear the sincerity in his father's voice; knowing that his father, still a student, was willing to become more serious for him, a toddler he had only just met, made him feel really, really happy.

"I'm glad," Lily said, and Harry could hear the truthfulness of her words as she gave James a dazzling smile. Maybe this is what had caused Lily to say yes to go to Hogsmeade with James. He snickered at his dad, though; he was totally star-struck by him.

Just then, Remus walked up to the table, looking pretty good for a few days until the full moon.

"Good morning, James, Lily, Harry," Remus greeted them in a warm tone, sitting across from Harry. "How did you sleep, Harry?" Remus asked, and Harry smiled. No matter where he went or what age he was, Remus was always worrying about him

"I sleep well, Moony," Harry replied truthfully; he hadn't had any nightmares yet, and he was thankful for that. 'I probably just jinxed myself, though,' Harry thought wryly, 'knowing my luck.'

"I'm glad you did, cub," Remus replied, smiling warmly at Harry. Harry grinned at Remus calling him "cub". This time, though, James did too.

"'Cub', Moony?" James asked, smirking at his friend. "Adopting him already?" Remus just smiled at him.

"He likes it," Remus replied, referring to his wolf, though Harry assumed he wasn't supposed to know that. "And he feels protective of him. I'm not sure why, but then again, I don't know a lot about the things he does."

Harry thought about that; maybe Moony could tell that he was actually his cub from the future? Remus had told him that Moony considered Harry his cub, despite the fact that Remus was only his honorary godfather.

"That's interesting," James mused, taking a bite of his eggs. "Well, it just means that Harry has another loyal babysitter." Remus snorted, and Lily smiled a little at that.

At that point in time, Sirius decided to make his appearance for the morning and came walking, almost gliding, through the doors of the Great Hall. His face lit up as he saw Harry.

"Hey there, pup!" He crowed loudly, getting glares from some of the people who just up. Thankfully, Harry was fully awake by then and it didn't bother him as much. "Sleep well?"

"Yeah!" Harry chirped, ignoring the coos he was getting from the girls at their table and the Hufflepuff table.

"That's good," Sirius replied, much in the way that Remus did. Harry giggled at that, making Sirius look at him strangely. Lily noticed his curious look and smiled.

"He's giggling because that's pretty much what Remus said when he came in, Sirius," Lily replied, moving to take Harry, who had finished most of his breakfast, out of the booster chair. Harry raised his arms like the good little toddler he was trying to be and was rewarded with a smile from Lily.

"Let's wipe off your hands now, shall we?" Lily asked, placing Harry in her lap. "We don't want them to be all sticky, do we?"

"Here, I'll help," James said, dipping one of the cloth napkins into a goblet of water next to him. He took one of Harry's hands and started cleaning his fingers off. Harry giggled, both at the fact that his unknowing parents were working together to help clean him up and that the water was cold. He saw James and Lily smile and couldn't help but give a big one back himself.

"So, what was the meeting last night about?" Sirius asked, and Harry paid half an ear as James made these ridiculous noises and motions as he and lily worked together to clean him up.

"It was decided that, while Harry remains here at Hogwarts, the Prefects and Head Boy and Girl will be taking care of Harry," Remus replied. "Professor Dumbledore said that the teachers would help out, but mainly it was our duty to take care of him."

"Right you are, Mr. Lupin," came the voice of Professor McGonagall from behind him. "The Headmaster will be making an announcement at the end of breakfast to the rest of the hall about him, so be prepared for the possible onslaught of attention from your fellow peers." McGonagall told the group of them, handing Remus Lily and James' schedules as they were still cleaning Harry up.

"I will see you all in class," McGonagall said before leaving them to look at their schedules as she moved down the table to pass them out.

"What do we have, Moony?" James asked, drying his hands as he was done washing Harry's.

"Let's see…" Remus said, and handed James his.

**Monday****: **

**Advanced Transfiguration: 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.**

**Lunch Break: 12 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.**

**Hour Break: 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.**

**Advanced Charms: 2:30 p.m. - 5 p.m.**

**Dinner: served from 5:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.**

**Tuesday****:**

**Double Potions: 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.**

**Lunch Break: 12 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.**

**Hour Break: 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.**

**Herbology: 2:30 p.m. - 4 p.m.**

**Arithmancy: 4 p.m. - 5: 30 p.m.**

**Dinner: served from 5:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.**

**Wednesday****:**

**Advanced Transfiguration: 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.**

**Lunch Break: 12 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.**

**Hour Break: 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.**

**Advanced Charms: 2:30 p.m. - 5 p.m.**

**Dinner: served from 5:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.**

**Thursday****: **

**Double Potions: 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.**

**Lunch Break: 12 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.**

**Hour Break: 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.**

**Herbology: 2:30 p.m. - 4 p.m.**

**Ancient Runes: 4 p.m. - 5: 30 p.m.**

**Dinner: served from 5:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.**

**Friday****:**

**Advanced Transfiguration: 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.**

**Lunch Break: 12 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.**

**Hour Break: 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.**

**Advanced Charms: 2:30 p.m. - 5 p.m.**

**Dinner: served from 5:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.**

***Please note that Apparition Lessons will start November on Sundays at 2 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. in October for a fee of 6 galleons**

"Sweet, Apparition lessons!" Sirius grinned before a pensive look appeared on his face. "Wait, why do you guys have an hour long break where I have a Study Hall?"

"It's probably the time we'll have Harry taking a nap, Sirius," Remus explained, and Sirius nodded, though he was pouting. Harry giggled again; it was much more amusing to see his godfather pout when he was healthy.

"Totally unfair," Sirius said, crossing his arms.

"Look at it this way Pads," James started, "we'll be babysitting while you'll probably spend the period making airplanes." Sirius stuck his tongue out while James, Lily, Remus and Harry laughed at his expense.

"Hey, where's Wormtail?" James asked, and Harry stiffened. He still hated that cowardly rat.

"He's still sleeping," Sirius shrugged. "I tried waking him up, but the lazy bigger decided he'd sleep in for today.

"Even though we have these two days off, it's not like he should be wasting them by sleeping the whole day, Lily admonished, "but maybe it's good that he did," Lily said, having noted the way Harry stiffened.

"Why would you say that, Lily?" Remus asked, his brow furrowing. "I thought you were fine with Peter."

"I am," Lily replied, "but I felt Harry stiffen at the mention of his name." They all looked at Harry who decided to avoid them by playing with his fingers, which were, interestingly enough, fascinating.

"Kiddo," James said, and Harry could hear the concern in his voice, "does Peter make you feel uncomfortable?" Harry didn't reply; if he did, he might just end up changing a part of the future.

"Lils, pass him over to me, would you?" James asked, and Harry felt himself being lifted out of Lily's soft lap to sturdy yet equally warm lap. Looking up, Harry stared at James with wide eyes.

"It's alright if he makes you feel uncomfortable, kiddo," James told him gently, and Harry could feel the gazes he and his father were getting from various parts of the room. "Is that why you don't like him?

"He feels bad," Harry hesitantly replied, and felt himself shiver anyways; the memories of the graveyard would not be forgotten easily. James felt his shudder and held Harry close to him.

"Don't worry kiddo," James reassured him gently, "We won't let you near him if he makes you feel uncomfortable." Harry nodded and laid his head into the hollow of his James' neck, closing his eyes as James began to rub circles into his back. He felt safe, secure and wanted, something he hadn't felt in a long, long time.

He sat there for a while, listening to his parents, Remus, Sirius and Alice (who had joined in a little after the mini-confrontation about Peter), opening his eyes as he heard the Great Hall quiet down. 'Dumbledore must be about to make his announcement about me, then,' Harry thought to himself. 'I wonder what he'll say.'

"Students," Dumbledore greeted, a smile on his face and a twinkle in his eye, "if you would all listen to an announcement before you enjoy your day off." he said. All the students quieted, and Dumbledore continued.

"Last night, it would seem Magic herself deemed us to have an extra resident at Hogwarts this year. As you all know, Mr. Lupin came in with an interesting surprise last night," here the majority of the students looked at the Gryffindor Table where James was still holding Harry, "Now, it has been decided that our seventh-year Prefects, as well as our Head Boy and Girl, will be taking care of the boy. The boy, Harry, is two-years-old" many of the girls in the hall started whispering and 'aahing' "and shall be staying with us, most likely, for the rest of the year. It would be wonderful of you all to help out if asked by any of the care-takers. Thank you."

Dumbledore ended his speech and waved everybody off. Some of the students left, taking these two lucky days as time to start doing homework, while others stayed and chatted a bit. And then, most of the student population wandered over to the Gryffindor Table where Harry was. Unfortunately for Harry, he still pretty much despised the spotlight, and so buried his head into James' shoulder, clutching his father's robes. Despite knowing that they wouldn't hurt him mentally, Harry was still a two-year-old toddler physically, and all these tall and large people were making him nervous.

"If you wish to continue scaring the boy to death, please, feel free to continue staring him as if he is an animal on display," The drawl of Lucius Malfoy could be heard from the back of the crowd. Immediately, most of the Hogwarts student body backed off at least a foot and split in half so that Lucius could make his way through.

Harry looked up and saw that it wasn't just Lucius, but also Selena Moon, the other Slytherin Prefect.

"Malfoy," James greeted, nodding his head to the Slytherin. "What brings you over to our neck of the woods?"

"I've come to inform you that the Headmaster has given us permission to go to Diagon Alley, Evans," Lucius replied in a neutral tone. Selena nodded.

"Professor Sprout also made a list of items that we had yet to consider," Selena continued, handing the list to Lily, "We also added the items that we reconsidered. If you have anything to add, it will update the list, as we have given copies to the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff Prefects as well." Harry tried to read the list, but Lily put it down at an angle that he couldn't properly see it.

"Thank you, Selena," Lily gave the female Slytherin a smile. "this is a great help." Selena nodded before turning to head back to her own table. By then, most of the students, seeing that the Prefects and Head students weren't going to be done any time soon, left to enjoy their free time.

"Oh, James, should we tell them?" Lily suddenly asked, garnering the attention of the Slytherin Prefects and James, who was playing giddy-up with Harry. Harry, though he had been paying attention to what they were saying, was still slightly disappointed when James stopped playing. Curse his toddler-like emotions.

"Hmm? Oh, that?" James asked, his face becoming a little more solemn. That? Were they going to bring up the Peter issue? He hoped not, he didn't like talking about the rat at all.

"What do you mean by 'that'?" Lucius queried, his eyes narrowing a touch as he and Selena made their way back over to the Gryffindors. James and Lily shared a look before Lily began.

"Well, about halfway through breakfast this morning, when we were talking about Peter," At the mention of his name, Harry's body stiffened up again, James feeling it this time, and the sharp eyes of the two sharp-eyed Slytherins catching it, "Harry stiffened. When asking him about it, he avoided it until James talked to him about it. To put it simply, it would be better if Peter wasn't around Harry at all." Lily concluded, reaching over to smooth Harry's hair. He leaned into the touch, appreciating the gesture; years of little to no human contact that didn't involve hitting or slapping had made Harry appreciate any gentle contact he got. It was the only reason he readily accepted Mrs. Weasley's hugs. Well, that and the fact that she'd feel hurt if he refused them, but more of the first reason than the second.

"He also seems to be a little starved of affection," Selena noted, and Harry blinked inwardly, trying not to show it as he started fiddling with James' bangs. Was he really that obvious? It appeared to be, seeing as how James and Lily nodded their assent.

"Normally, when I babysit, children like to be held, yes, but they also like to run around. Harry, however, doesn't complain whenever we hold him for that long and doesn't complain at all." Lily noted.

"He also leans into nice gestures, such as the one you just gave him Lils," James added, kicking up his leg a few times. Harry giggled in spite of himself; he couldn't help at the sudden jump he would experience with this giddy-up game, even if they were talking about him and his issues.

"The logical conclusion would be to give him more affection, then," Lucius, surprisingly, commented. "If he is starved for it then give him more of it." 'Maybe what Malfoy said about family being the most important thing in pureblood families was true, then,' Harry mused before he was squished against James' firm chest.

"Well we'll give it, then," James agreed determinedly. "Harry won't have to yearn for any love or affection. What do you think, Harry?"

Harry had given up any pretense of appearing to be oblivious to what the current conversation; he knew his act wouldn't slide by the two Slytherins, especially Lucius Malfoy.

Harry just nodded, not looking at any of the seventh years. No matter what, it would always be hard to admit anything of this emotional level; it didn't help him survive his years at Hogwarts, after all.

"Enough of that, then," Lily said, "we don't need such intense emotions so early in the morning. Let's do something productive." She suggested, and James stood up, a grin on his face.

"Let's take him flying, then!" He exclaimed excitedly, and Harry grinned wildly. It'd been a long time since he flew. Lily just glared at him.

"You are not taking him flying. He's too small!"

And that was how Harry had ended his first morning in the past: full, happy, feeling happy and slightly deaf in one ear as his mum scolded his dad.

0o0-0o0-0o0

**So we have some emotional stuff here; I sometimes felt that Harry's neglect was a little down-played, so I upped the ante emotion-wise. And who doesn't love a family-loving Lucius?**

**On that note, I found this brilliantly sweet and adorably cute picture of 4-5 year old Draco being carried by Lucius. If enough people want it, I'll post the link on the next chappie. **

**Bye-bye!**


	6. Chapter 6

**I love you all, and this pic that I promised I would put up because enough people wanted it.**

. .240.

**All you need to do is copy and paste it, and voila!**

**Now, thank you all for your reviews; they make me feel warm and fuzzy inside. XD Seriously though, I'm glad people like this story enough to want it to be in one of the stories-I-update poll I had (which is now closed, unless I messed up, which is always a distinct possibility).**

**Also to note, if any of you read my profile page (I decided to change it to something much more useful, like updating you all on updates of mah stories), it said that I was going to publish the Diagon Alley chapter. However, I decided that it wouldn't fit very well in this chappie (see my profile for more info if you want).**

**Now, Onward with the Story! (Note that there may be some darker hints in this chapter for various reasons that you will soon find out).**

0o0-0o0-0o0

Legend

"Speaking"

'Thoughts'

"-Parselmouth-"

Dreams/Nightmares

Warnings: As you already know, this story is different than canon. Thus, I will be changing it as I please, making surprising and maybe upsetting changes Harry's years at Hogwarts.

0o0-0o0-0o0

Harry had indeed been right when he thought he jinxed himself back on the first day of the school year. He had hoped he wouldn't have any, but he wasn't really surprised when he got a nightmare. However, he was surprised at what the nightmare was about.

Start Dream

Harry was sliding down a tunnel, the tunnel leading to the Chamber of Secrets if he was right. The tunnel was the same as it was before, slime layering the bottom of his clothes along with crushed animal bones as he slid down. He landed at the bottom, making his way forwards with one goal in mind: Save Ginny.

He could hear Ron and Lockhart behind him, and heard more than saw as Lockhart used Ron's faulty wand to try and obliviate the redhead. He vaguely wondered why he wasn't next to Ron.

The thought was wiped from his mind, though, as the walls crumbled and he and Ron were separated.

"You all right, Harry?" Harry heard Ron ask.

"Yeah, but it looks like we've been separated," Harry said, "so I'm going to go ahead."

"Be careful," was Ron's muffled response as Harry made his way further down the corridor, further into the Chamber of Secrets.

When he finally made it to the main room of the chamber, he paled as he saw Ginny lying there, pale and sickly looking. Rushing over to her, he felt for her pulse, barely feeling one. He heard a chuckle from behind him and held up his wand.

Standing before him was Tom Riddle, though his twelve-year-old self didn't know that yet. With caution, Harry slowly stood up from beside Ginny, placing himself in front of the first year in an attempt to protect her.

"Well, well, well," the apparition said, "we finally meet, Harry Potter." A malevolent smirk came on to the handsome face of the quickly solidifying boy before him.

"Who are you?" the twelve-year-old Harry asked, and became tense at the almost cruel smile that came upon the elder boy's face.

"I am Tom Riddle," the boy, now known as Tom, replied "Though that will soon not matter."

"Why is that?" Harry queried, gripping his wand tighter.

"Miss Weasley's life force shall soon be completely transferred over to me, and I shall soon have a body once again." Harry's eyes widened in shock and rage, to which the elder boy merely smirked.

"Of course, that means that you, too, shall have to meet your end here as well, Harry Potter."

It looked like the dream was going exactly as it had back in his second year. However, it soon made a sharp, unexpected twist.

"Seeing as how I do have time, however, we shall play for a bit before my loyal creature shall enjoy a meal out of you." Tom then smiled a malicious smirk, holding what appeared to be Ginny's wand. "It's fortunate that Miss Weasley's wand works well enough for me, hmm?" Tom pointed it at Harry. "Crucio!"

Harry, never feeling anything this excruciatingly painful before, screamed in pure agony as he was brought to his knees that quickly were unable to support him. Vaguely, Harry heard shouting in the background before the pain overtook him and everything went black.

End Dream

Harry woke up screaming, thrashing in the strong arms that were currently holding him. Wait, strong arms? As Harry slowly calmed down, he heard the comforting murmurs of a male voice, what he was beginning to recognize as his father's.

When he finally stopped screaming, he looked up to see the incredibly concerned look on his father's face. And then, not being able to help himself, he started sobbing.

0o0-0o0-0o0

James was sleeping peacefully, Harry's crib a little ways from his head so he could hear if anything went wrong. He had put Harry down about four or so hours ago, and so, was not expecting to be awakened in the dead of night to hear screaming.

Jumping out of his bed, James blinked before he realized that the screaming was coming from Harry and immediately made his way to the screaming toddler, picking him up and trying to calm him down. When Harry started thrashing about, screaming even louder. James rocked him back and forth, murmuring lowly and gently to Harry, as he had heard from his mum that when babies cried, lower octave voices were more soothing,

About a minute later, Harry stopped screaming. Looking down at the young boy with concern, he felt his heart squeeze in pain as the little toddler began sobbing with a heartbreaking sound.

At that moment, Lily came running into his room, looking a little disgruntled and slightly out of breath.

"Got caught in my sheets when I heard Harry scream. What happened?" Lily asked as she finally stopped in front of the sobbing boy and her fellow head student. "Did he have a nightmare?" James nodded.

"I think so," James replied, rocking Harry back and forth as the sobs continued. "And a nasty one at that; he was thrashing around when I picked him up, and didn't stop screaming for another minute after."

Lily ran a soothing hand over Harry's head, hoping to give the toddler some comfort.

"What could have caused him to have such a terrible nightmare?" Lily wandered aloud, breathing a little sigh of relief as Harry's sobs started to lose steam. It took another minute, but soon, Harry had stopped sobbing and was down to sniffles and the occasional hiccup.

"Whatever it was, it would be better to talk about it some other time," James replied. "It's about one in the morning right now, so why don't you go back to sleep Lils."

"Are you sure James?" Lily asked with a light frown. "I could always stay up until he falls asleep."

"Nah, it's all right," James said, giving a warm, albeit tired, smile. "Harry looks like he's about to doze off here pretty soon, so I'll wait up with him. I'll probably let him stay in my bed with me, too."

Lily smiled at the thought.

"All right then." Lily agreed, giving a kiss to Harry's forehead. "Good night, Harry. Good night James."

"'Night, Lily," James replied, a yawn interrupting him halfway as Lily left the room. Looking down at Harry, he saw that the kid was really going to fall asleep soon.

"All right kiddo, let's go to bed, yeah?" James asked, walking over to his bed. Harry nodded in what James thought was an adorable way- though he would never tell that to anyone- before slipping down under his covers, placing Harry against his chest.

"Good night, Harry," James murmured, and, just about to fall asleep, almost missed Harry's reply,

"G'night P'ongs," the boy replied before his breathing evened out once more.

For some reason, after hearing Harry call him that, James had an incredibly warm feeling inside. He went to bed with a smile.

0o0-0o0-0o0

When Harry woke up the next morning, he felt very warm. And it was a nice type of warm, too. He sighed, only to startle as he felt vibrations against his pillow. He blinked. Pillows didn't vibrate, did they?

Slowly raising his head (he was still sleepy) his eyes looked up blearily to see his dad's face smiling down amusedly at him.

"Hey there kiddo," James said, his voice sounding a little tired. Harry noticed this, and when he looked at James' face more closely, he noticed that there were little bags under his eyes. 'Why would he have bags under his eyes?' Harry wondered. 'For that to happen, he would have had to wake up in the middle of the night…' And as that thought finished, the memory of the nightmare returned full force, making Harry shudder.

James, who was still holding Harry, noticed this and started rubbing circles into Harry's back.

"Hey now, it'll be all right," James crooned to Harry, holding him against his chest without breaking the pattern of circles on Harry's back, "it was just a nightmare, everyone gets them." They stayed like that for a while, not having to worry too much about being late to breakfast as it was a Saturday. Eventually, though, James sat up from his bed with a sigh, pulling the covers away from his body.

"C'mon kiddo," James told Harry, sitting the boy upright on the edge of the bed as he began to change into a pair of jeans and a black t-shirt that said "You Wish You Were Me" on it in Gold lettering. Watching his dad pull on a pair of socks, Harry couldn't help but giggle as the socks were two different one, the right one being blue and shorter than its black counterpart on the left.

James smiled ruefully at Harry before going over to his desk chair where he grabbed the outfit Lily and he had decided for him last night: an emerald green t-shirt polo with a pair of black cargo shorts. Lily figured that Lucius would be somewhat appeased, seeing as how Harry was wearing all Slytherin colors (his socks were striped green and black). His father had also changed his pants, giving him mini-boxers with golden snitches flying around on them ("They match mine," James had stage-whispered to Harry, causing Harry to laugh as James was hit by an annoyed Lily).

"All right, you're all ready to go to Diagon today Harry," James declared with a satisfied smile as he finished double-knotting Harry's shoes.. The satisfaction, however, soon turned mischievous as he said to the boy,

"Why don't we fly to the Great Hall?"

0o0-0o0-0o0

From inside the Great Hall, where those who had planned on being awake before noon that day turned their heads to the entrance of the Great Hall as they heard shrieks of delighted laughter coming from just outside the doors.

Less than a minute later stood James, who was slowly lowering Harry so that the toddler was being held on James' hip.

"Thank you for flying Potter Airway," James announced to the slightly flushed Harry, who was still smiling widely from his trip down to the Great Hall.

"Just what were you two doing?" Lily asked with an exasperated tone, though the fondness in her voice was heard as well.

"You know how you told me that some dads will lift the kids in the air like one of those aeroplanes?" James asked, and continued with Lily's nod. "Well, that's what we were doing."

"But the dorms…" Lily began, ending her sentence there as they both knew the entrance to the Head Students' dorms was generally kept a secret from the rest of the student population.

"We just went around the this floor before coming in here, right kiddo?" James grinned widely, ruffling Harry's hair.

"Yeah!" Harry agreed happily, waving the piece of toast Lily had put in front of him excitedly. Lily smiled at him indulgently before turning back to her breakfast. She didn't see the wink James sent to Harry when the two were sure she wasn't looking.

Harry giggled. Though what James had told Lily was true, it wasn't exactly what she thought. When his dad had looked at him with that mischievous look, Harry knew something fun was going to happen. And it was.

James, in a moment of pure Prongs-filled thoughts, had come up with the idea to go flying to breakfast…on a broom. Of course, Harry was all for it, and he had a blast as he and his father flew through Hogwarts on his Comet 140*. Speeding through the corridors of Hogwarts and doing loop-de-loops, spirals and various drops, Harry relished the wind rushing past his face, the adrenaline of flying on a broom as he used to, and of the feeling of being warm and protected in the arms of his father. The next time he ever had to make a patronus, the was pretty sure that this was going to be the memory he used.

Harry was pulled from his thoughts when, out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Lucius Malfoy walking towards the Gryffindor table. Harry tugged on James' sleeve (as his mouth was full of food and he was taught better than to talk with food in his mouth), pointing to the tall blond as he approached the trio.

"Morning, Malfoy," James greeted amicably, turning to Harry to clean his fingers and face off (the toast had been demolished spectacularly).

"Good morning, Malfoy," Lily replied as well, sending the Slytherin a friendly smile. Lucius raised an eyebrow at that, but nodded.

"Potter, Evans," Lucius replied. His tone, while not completely friendly, was much pleasanter than it had been over the years.

"G'mornin'," Harry greeted Lucius as well, giving the prefect a happy smile. While he didn't very much care for the Lucius in the future, he did like this one; he seemed kinder, more like the person Draco had often boasted his Father to be.

At the unexpected greeting, Lucius' eyebrows went up a little, but he gave Harry a small smile in return.

"Yes, good morning to you too Harry," Lucius replied, his tone the warmest Harry had ever heard it before. Lily and James, Harry noticed, looked slightly surprised at this. Harry didn't blame him; after all, if he had been in their shoes, he would've been surprised as well. Though, Harry supposed, if there were any Gryffindors at the table right now- since it was Saturday, the majority of the lions wouldn't be awake before eleven at the earliest, and it was only ten to ten.

"Did you sleep well?" Lucius asked, his eyes narrowing slightly as he took a seat at the Gryffindor table (boy, wasn't he full of surprises today? Harry could see the Slytherins across from them in the Great Hall raising their eyebrows at their action. "You both have bags under your eyes. I trust you did not do anything while Harry was asleep…" Lucius didn't need to finish his thought as James, Lily (and Harry, though he wasn't supposed to, not at this age, anyways). Surprisingly, James answered calmly.

"No," James shook his head, sobering slightly as memories of the previous night resurfaced. "Around twelve-thirty last night, Harry had a nightmare." At this, Harry lowered his head a little; no matter what age he was, Harry didn't like to cause trouble for anyone. James noticed this action, though, and tapped Harry's nose lightly. Surprised, Harry looked up at his father.

"Hey now, it wasn't your fault you had a nightmare," James told him, his voice gentle yet firm. "Everybody gets them, and I'm sure you're the same as everyone else." 'If only he knew,' Harry thought sadly.

"He is correct, Harry," Lucius nodded, "though it is unfortunate that you suffered from one. Do you get them often?"

When Lucius asked Harry this, the elder blond looked him in the eyes. 'Probably to make sure I'm not lying,' Harry thought with a mental sigh. He nodded reluctantly, watching as a small frown came to Lucius' face.

"If that is the case," Lucius said, "Then we should add children's sleeping potions to the list of required items he needs."

Lily, who Harry noticed had a frown on her face as well, nodded in agreement.

"I'll add it right now," the redhead replied, taking out the list. She looked to Lucius with a thoughtful expression. "Should we go to St. Mungo's for this?"

Lucius shook his head slightly.

"No, we shall see the doctor I saw when I was a child. I believe Potter had him as well?" Lucius and Lily looked to James, who nodded.

"Don't worry Lils, he's a good doctor; my mum would only accept the best, after all." James reassured Lily, who gave a small smile in return.

"All right then," she agreed. Standing up, she took Harry out of his red booster seat, placing him on her hip.

"Ready to go, Harry?" She asked Harry, and he nodded. He was looking forward to seeing Diagon Alley back in the '70s, though Mr. Weasley had told him that there wasn't much different than the current one, maybe a few stores here and there.

"Have fun kiddo," his father told him, ruffling his hair slightly. "And don't cause too much trouble, yeah?"

Harry nodded, grinning in a way that had Lily groaning slightly.

"Stop being a bad influence on him, James," Lily scolded James, who only grinned childishly in return. Lily rolled her eyes, walking towards the entrance of the Great Hall to make their way to Dumbledore's office.

"Bye bye!" Harry waved to his father, who waved back to him in return before Harry was completely out of the Great Hall.

0o0-0o0-0o0

The walk to Dumbledore's office was surprisingly pleasant, Harry thought, listening to the conversation between the two seventh-years. The two were in the same Ancient Runes class, it seemed, and struck a conversation during the walk as to what they were going to learn. Harry, who had only made it through to sixth year Ancient Runes (his seventh year was spent hunting down Horcruxes), was also interested in finding out what they were learning. Though DADA was his favorite class, Ancient Runes took a close second.

When they arrived at the gargoyle in front of the door leading to Dumbledore's office, Harry was basically bouncing on Lily's hip; part of it was in excitement about going to Diagon Alley (he had always loved the place), but it was also due to what he was going to learn about Ancient Runes.

'Dear Merlin,' Harry thought to himself as Lily gave the password to the guardian gargoyle (chocolate frogs). 'I'm starting to sound like Hermione!'

While Harry was debating the pros and cons of being like Hermione ('I don't think the twins would ever let me live it down,' Harry thought with an inward pout), the two prefects had reached the top, pulling Harry out of his thoughts as the three were greeted by the Headmaster's cheerful greeting.

"Good morning Mr. Malfoy, Miss Evans, young Harry," Dumbledore, dressed in sky blue robes with fluffy white clouds floating about, greeted.

"Good morning, Headmaster," Lily and Lucius replied while Harry gave Dumbledore the same greeting he had given Lucius, causing the old wizard to chuckle merrily.

"I'm glad you all are in such high spirits this morning," Dumbledore said, popping into his mouth one of his endless lemon drops. Lily and Lucius nodded, while Harry stared at the lemon drops. For some reason, he really wanted one of them.

Dumbledore, of course, noticed this (he was Dumbledore, after all) and offered the bowl to Harry. Harry looked up at Lily with what he thought were mega-watt puppy dog eyes (he would later be told that they were). Lily consented with a sigh, letting Harry reach his hand out to the bowl. He would have grabbed a handful, but Lily's stern look stopped him, and he only took one. Dumbledore chuckled again before standing up from his desk to walk over to the trio.

"You can never have too many sweets," Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. He put his hand into his pocket, removing what Harry saw to be a stuffed animal goat.

"I do believe this may keep Harry occupied while you two shop," Dumbledore handed the toy over to Harry, who squeezed it to his chest, and wasn't afraid to admit that he squealed in delight when it made a "behh" noise like real goats do.

"Thank you!" Harry crowed, giving Dumbledore a large smile; he always appreciated the gifts he received, seeing as how the Dursleys never gave him anything (useful or wanted, anyways).

"You are quite welcome, my boy," Dumbledore replied happily, his already twinkling eyes twinkling even more.

"Thank you, Professor, that was very kind of you," Lily thanked the Headmaster, who waved it away.

"Do not think anything of it, Miss Evans," the Headmaster replied. "All children deserve to be spoiled just a little while they're at this age." Lucius nodded in agreement, making Harry wonder if that's why Draco had had so many toys while he was growing up.

"I shall not keep you three, then," Dumbledore continued, walking over to his floo, opening the floo connection with a flick of his wand. "To return, simply recite 'Headmaster's Office, Hogwarts' and wait a few seconds before entering so that the fireplace is fully connected."

Lucius and Lily nodded, Lucius taking Harry as he would be able to keep a better hold on him while traveling via floo. Lily took a handful of floo powder before clearly stating,

"The Leaky Cauldron!" And stepping into the fireplace.

Lucius gave Lily a few moments to ensure that she had moved out of the way before grabbing a handful of floo powder himself. He looked down at Harry, readjusting his grip on him so that Harry wouldn't fall down.

"Make sure you have a good grip on the toy from the Headmaster, Harry," Lucius told him. "You would not want to lose it, after all." When Harry had a firm grip on his new toy, he nodded to Lucius who threw the floo powder into the fire place, and watched as it turned green and announced his destination.

"The Leaky Cauldron," Lucius annunciated loud and clear before stepping through into the fire.

The last sight Harry saw was the Headmaster waving cheerfully at him.

0o0-0o0-0o0

**And there you have it: chapter 6! I do hope you enjoyed it.**

***According to the source I used, if James got a brand new broom that summer, it would be the Comet 160. If you would like to see where I got this information from- I did the mental calculations myself, though- here's the link:**

** wiki/Muggles'_Guide_to_Harry_Potter/Magic/Brooms**

**(Did you know that when you highlight a hyper-link on a Word Doc, it has Hufflepuff coloring? It's brilliant (I'm a 'Puff, don't judge).**

**Now, I hope you enjoyed the chappie; please review!**


	7. Chapter 7

Hahaha...hi? Please don't throw tomatoes at me~! There's an Author's Ote at the end for anyone who cares to read it, but I won't hold it to anyone if they don't. :3

Now, onwards with the Story! Enjoy~!

P.S.- this is the first time I've used copy 'n paste on fanfic, so I'm not sure if all of the italics and whatnot will appear. Tell me if they do, please~

0o0-0o0-0o0

Legend

"Speaking"

'Thoughts'

"-Parselmouth-"

Dreams/Nightmares

Warnings: As you already know, this story is different than canon. Thus, I will be changing it as I please, making surprising and maybe upsetting changes Harry's years at Hogwarts.

0o0-0o0-0o0

Being carried while using the floo connection, Harry decided, was a lot nicer than doing it himself. Though he had still closed his eyes as he and Lucius were spinning, it was far more enjoyable when he didn't have to worry about landing in the correct destination himself.

Harry opened his eyes as he felt Lucius take a solid step,taking a look at the Leaky Cauldron of his parents' day. He was surprised to see that it was decently filled, seeing as how Voldemort's terror attacks had started to pick up in frequency around that time. There were many witches and wizards about the establishment, some in groups of two or three, others in groups of five or six. Harry noted that no one was ever alone.

'It's a smart way to go, the buddy system,' Harry mused to himself as he, on Lucius' hip, made his way to the portal to Diagon Alley out in the back. On the way, they were stopped by Tom, the balded wizard looking curiously at the three of them.

"Hello there Mr. Malfoy, Ms. Evans," Tom greeted cheerfully. "What brings ya to the Leaky Cauldron today?"

"We're here to pick up supplies, Tom," Lily replied, being the more amiable of the two seventh-year students.

"Supplies for school, then?" Tom asked, his cloth-covered hand cleaning out a glass cup.

"You could say that," Lily agreed, her eyes flickering to Harry before giving Tom another smile. "We'll see you around."

"Have a nice time!" Tom called as they made their way to the back entrance. It was quiet until they left the building, the noise of the pub fading as the door closed.

"You didn't tell him about Harry," Lucius noted as the door closed, leaving them in silence. Lily nodded.

"It's safer that little to no information get out about Harry. As we still don't know how he got here, it's better to have no know that he's from around here." Harry nodded in agreement; after all, if the Voldemort of this time managed to catch wind about his presence here, he might just end up kidnapped. Lucius seemed to agree with this as well, for he nodded in agreement.

"A wise decision," the blonde-haired man agreed, and while his face held a neutral expression, Harry heard the underlying tone of satisfaction, most likely from having a companion who had a similar level of intelligence that he had. Of course, if Harry, who was still affected by his toddler-like senses, could sense it, then so could his mother,

"Yes," Lily replied, amusement lacing her tone as she smirked slightly at Lucius. "After all, not at Gryffindors are idiots." Lily turned her attention back towards the wall to tap the correct bricks, not bothering to see the flash of surprise and amusement on Lucius' face. But then, Harry figured, she probably expected that reaction out of the Slytherin Prefect if she had turned away right after she said it.

Harry's thoughts stopped dwelling on the subject as he heard the tapping of the bricks folding themselves away as the entrance of Diagon Alley revealed itself to the three Hogwarts residences.

"Welcome," Lily said, giving Harry a bright smile, "to Diagon Alley!" Her hand gesturing towards the now easily accessible entrance of the hidden alley, Harry's eyes lit up as he saw Diagon Alley once again. No matter how many years he had been in the wizarding world, seeing Diagon Alley was always a magical experience for him, no pun intended.

As it had been all those years ago, the alley was still bustling with robed witches and wizards, the colors depending on taste and wealth, height and weight. The cobblestone road stretched out for miles as the witches and wizards traversed into the many shops, the sellers advertising their products both outside their store through window signs and employees in uniforms shouting out the great deals that their store had as they competed for customers. With his head spinning around in so many directions, Harry didn't realize that they were almost at Gringotts until he saw a blinding white in the corner of his eye. Turning around to face the white glint, Harry stared at the giant building which he easily recognizes as Gringotts, the only wizarding bank in the wizarding world. Run by Goblins, it was one of the safest places to store anything of value, the Goblins going the extra mile to earn and keep any gold from the magical population.

Entering the marbled building, Harry glanced up as he read what was probably the most well-known poem in the wizarding world:

Enter stranger, but take heed

Of what awaits the sin of greed,

For those who take, but do not earn

Must pay most dearly in their turn.

So if you seek beneath our floors

A treasure that was never yours,

Thief, you have been warned, beware

Of finding more than treasure there.

He snorted inwardly as he read the poem, remembering how he had tried, and succeeded, in taking Hufflepuff's cup from the Lestrange vault. And then, of course, he, Ron and Hermione had found the "more than treasure there" part; naturally, it had been a dragon, which the three had used to escape the bank. 'Now that I'm thinking about it,' Harry thought, 'I wonder if the Goblins are still holding grudges against us for that.' Feeling nervous, he brought his new goat plushie up to his chest and hugged it, feeling the security of Dumbledore's magical signature as he held it.

He felt Lucius' arms tighten around him, and he looked up to see the blonde looking down at him, his eyes promising safety and reassurement.

"Do not worry, " Lucius said in a low tone of voice so that it was only Harry that could hear him, "Noing is going to happen, I will make sure of it." he paused, glancing at Lily for a moment. "We both will."

Harry blushed a bit, but snuggled into Lucius' arms anyway. Though he wasn't too used to it- Mrs. Weasley had done her best in regards to that- he did appreciate the effort the blonde was putting in to reassure him.

The trio the passed the two goblins standing guard outside the door leading from the entrance hall to the main hall of the bank. Since Harry was still being carried in Lucius' arms he cou

Dnt see the goblin guards very well. He could, though, see the spears they were holding. Harry was fascinated; he hadn't had the time in his original timeline to focus on their spears, despite his secret longing to. There was just something strong but elegant about the goblin spears.

So without thinking, Harry reached out and grabbed the blade of the spear with his left hand. This, admittedly, wasn't the best idea, seeing as how goblin spears were made to be extremely sharp. That being said, it cut right into his soft, toddler-sized hand. Now, Harry was more than desensitized to pain because of his upbringing, so he didn't really react to it. He didn't need to though, because there was someone else already doing so.

"Master Malfoy, I would have you and your companion step aside for a moment," a voice said from below Harry's initial line of sight. "There is something urgent that needs taking care of."

"And what would that be?" Lucius drawled in the typical pureblood fashion, gripping Harry in his arms a touch tighter. The goblin looked the Malfoy heir in the eyes with a raised eyebrow before looking down at Harry. Lucius' gaze followed the goblin's, and Harry was somewhat shocked to see such open panic on the blonde's face as he took in Harry's bloodied hand.

"If you would follow me," the goblin repeated, and this time Lucius nodded in return, his face returning to the typical blank slate, although his eyes still held hat level of panic.

"Evans, we are making a detour." Lucius told Lily before turning to follow the goblin. Lily, who was next in line to meet with the teller, turned to Lucius with an annoyed expression before her eyes caught sight of Harry's bloodied hand. Her eyes went wide and her skin paled rapidly. She started walking, quickly catching up to Lucius and Harry.

Harry started fidgeting a bit as they made their way out of the main hall and into the private meeting sector. He had realized right after he had grabbed the spear that it hadn't been the best move. Unfortunately, he had had a moment of toddler-y weakness. The top of the spear, which was adorned with gold and rubies, was quite shiny and the blade of the spear was even shinier. But now he was wondering how bad he punishment would be; he didn't know how parents in the wizarding world gave punishments to their kids- he didn't really count the Weasleys because, as troublesome as it may be to the Weasley brood, he didn't consider gardening to be punishment- but he assumed it was bad because everyone had always been freaked out whenever the Professors said they would be sending letters home to their parents.

His worry only increased as they entered one of the meeting rooms and the door was closed behind them. Lucius had carefully placed him into his mom's lap, his mother having already sat in a chair. Lucius pulled out his handkerchief and placed it against the cut against his palm. He was watching Harry with unreadable eyes and for once Harry couldn't decipher the emotions in someone's eyes.

The goblin cleared his throat, garnering all of their attention.

"I shall call for one of our healers, if you wish," the goblin spoke, and both Lily and Lucius nodded.

"That would be most appreciated," Lucius spoke, and that was the closest Harry thought he was going to ever hear a Malfoy thank someone in public. The goblin nodded and left the room, leaving Harry alone to face the quickly growing silence.

Neither Lucius or Lily spoke for a while, and Lucius still had that unreadable expression on his face. After a few minutes of silence, Lucius gently peals off his now blood-soaked handkerchief. Harry frowned at the ruined handkerchief, feeling bad about ruin something of obvious high quality (he thought it was silk).

"Does it hurt?" Lucius asked, his voice full of concern. Harry looked up from his thoughts about the handkerchief, surprised at Lucius' question; he wasn't expecting the worry. He saw Lucius' eyes narrow slightly.

"Does it hurt?" Lucius asked again, and Harry realized he had never given a response. He shook his head, and he felt Lily turn him so his right side was facing her and his left side would be on the outside for when the goblin healer came.

"Harry, you don't need to hide it from us," Lily said, and Harry was taken aback when she saw that she was almost in tears. He looked between the two of them and realized that they didn't believe him.

"Doesn't hurt," Harry told them in the most sincere voice he could muster. Lucius and Lily frowned at that.

"That's rather strange," Lily said, and Lucius nodded. "Most toddlers would normally be bawling their eyes out right now. It might be a good idea to ask if the healer will do a full scan on him..." Lily and Lucius kept on discussing what they would do and didn't notice as Harry's eyes grow distant as unwanted memories of his childhood came to the forefront of his mind.

"You freak! You're such a bother!"

"You and your kind aren't welcome here!"

"Go die, the world would be better off without you!"

Without him realizing it, tears started to fall down is face, silent but steady. He also didn't see the expressions of Lily and Lucius go from thoughtful to alarmed as the tears started to fall down their charge's face.

0o0-0o0-0o0

Lily and Lucius had been talking about the possible medical issues, both muggle and magical, that joule be ailing Harry.

"Harry could be suffering form tape worm," Lily mused, secretly enjoying the look of confusion on the normally stoic Malfoy's face.

"Tape worm?" Lucius questioned.

"Yes, a parasitic worm that makes its place in the intestine. It absorbs a lot of the vitamins that its host ingests. What makes it so dangerous is that it also takes away feelings of pain or discomfort that it's host feels." Lucius looked disgusted, and Lily nodded in agreement. She was going to continue on but paused when she felt water hit her hand. She looked at Harry only to become rapidly alarmed when she saw that he was crying.

"Harry? What's the matter? Harry? Harry!" Lily was calling his name, but he wasn't responding.

"Harry?" Lucius tried this time, and they did get a response, but it wasn't what they were expecting.

"Not a fweak..." Harry mumbled, and the two seventh-years frowned at that.

"Of course you're not a freak Harry," Lily cooed, cuddling Harry to her while looking at Lucius with panic in her eyes. "Why would you think that?"

Harry still didn't respond, causing even more worry for the two of them. Lucius knelt down on one knee and gently, but firmly, took Harry's face in his larger one.

"Harry, look at me." Lucius demanded, and was relieved to see that some light came back to Harry's eyes. "You are not a freak of any sort. I do not know who told you this, but they are cruel people and absolutely wrong."

"He's right Harry," Lily added, caressing his cheek with the back of her hand. "I haven't known you long, but I know you're the sweetest little boy I have ever met, and I'm so luck to have met you, even of you might've fallen from the sky."

That seemed to have worked as Harry smiled a little.

"There now, all better," Lily smoothed Harry's hair back in a soothing manner and wiped away his tears. At that moment, the goblin came back in with another one, this one dressed in healing garments rather than the armor the other goblin was wearing. If they saw the tear tracks on Harry's face, they didn't say anything.

"This is Healer Smoothfang," the goblin said (and Lily wondered if they would ever find out his name). "He knows more about the human body than most goblin healers do, and so was designated his healer."

"Can you do full-body scans, Heaker Smoothfang?" Lily asked, garnering the attention of the two goblins.

"I can," Smoothfang replied, "though is there any particular reason you wish for me to do so?"

"We ask of you to scan Harry," Lucius said, his polite tone interesting the goblins; Malfoys weren't really polite to goblins, after all. "We are worried because, upon inquiring, he stated that he did not feel any pain."

Smoothfang's eyes narrowed, though it was a little difficult for the two teenagers to tell with their faces. He walked over to Harry and first bandaged the sliced hand. He then placed a single, gnarled finger upon Harry's forehead and began chanting in Gobbledegook. If it weren't for the act that this was a worrying situation, Lily would have been amused as she watched Harry's eyes go inward following the finger of the goblin.

As Smoothfinger's chant began slowing down, a piece of paper appeared and began floating down and writing appeared in Gobbledegook. Smoothfang grabbed the parchment and began reading the results, a frown becoming more and more prominent on his face.

"What's wrong?" Lily asked, not liking the frown on the goblin healer's face. She became startled hen the warrior goblin, who had been reading over Smoothfang's shoulder, started ranting in Gobbledegook.

"I don't know who he lived with before, but it's a good thing he left," Smoothfang started. "He is currently suffering from malnutrition, a slight crack in his skull, badly healed fractures and breaks, consistent night terrors and, if untreated, a disease in his eyes that will cause eventual blindness by the time he reaches thirty."

By the time he had finished, Lily was horrified, the warrior goblin was still greatly anger and muttering in Gobbledegook and Lucius, though his face was blank, his eyes were enraged.

"You will heal him." Stated Lucius, as if not doing so wasn't an option.

"Of course," Smoothfang replied in the same tone as Lucius. "It will cost 45 galleons; 5 galleons for the crack, 10 galleons to repair the incorrectly healed fractures and breaks, 10 galleons for the potion to prevent the eye disease and heal his eyes, and 20 galleons for potions to stop his night terrors."

"And how are your potions better than St. Mungo's or a private healer?" This came from Lily, causing Lucius to raise an eyebrow at her question; it was, after all, similar to what most purebloods would ask a goblin. Smoothfang didn't even bat an eye.

"Our potions are better for the child; the ingredients are less addictive and can be taken more often. He will not become reliant upon them to cure his night terrors." Smoothfang replied, a smirk appearing as an excited glint appeared in Lily's eyes. "We will deliver a batch to the hospital matron monthly until you sending the request to cancel them."

Lily and Lucius looked at each other, and then down at Harry, who had somehhow managed to find a ruby and was playing with it, a fascinat look in his emerald green eyes. The warrior goblin seemed amused and a little baffled, seeing as how that ruby had been sitting unnoticed on the opposite side of the room. He could only wonder how the boy had managed to get his hands on it, but he had some ideas.

"This is quite generous of you," Lucius said, the underlying question of why not needing to be said.

"The boy has strong magic," Smoothfang replied. "It will not take long for him to fully recover from most of his injuries, save for the nightly terrors." The goblin healer paused, gazing at Harry with unreadable eyes. "And no child should be hurt as he has, no matter what age." Thre was silence as everyone in the room fell quiet, agreeing with what the healer had said. Harry looked up at that, gazing curiously at Lucius, his hands tightly grasped around the ruby.

"Very well," Lucius said, "remove the cost from the main Malfoy vault." Smoothfang nodded and head towards the door.

"I will retrieve the potions necessary for the child, and will administer them upon return," Smoothfang said, exiting the room.

"I too will return to my post," said the warrior goblin.

"Thank you for your assistance..." Lily trailed offs realizing that they had not actually heard the name of the warrior goblin that had been with them for most of their time there.

"Sharpclaw," the warrior goblin, now revealed as Sharpclaw, supplied, and Lily smiled slightly.

"Thank you, then, Sharpclaw," Lily repeated and Sharpclaw nodded once before leaving.

There was silence in the room for a moment before Lily broke it.

"That has to be the nicest I've ever seen a goblin act, healer or no," Oly commented, and Lucius could only nod.

0o0-0o0-0o0

After the disastrous but rather informational Gringotts session, Harry, Lucius and Lily spent their time shopping in Diagon Alley, and Harry was loving every moment of it. He was somewhat uncomfortable with how much they were spending on him- for some reason the Malfoy heir had decided he would spoil Harry rotten and Lily wasn't doing anything to stop him. He now had a full wardrobe, both muggle and magical, that would grow with him for a couple of sizes, four different pairs of shoes and a large assortment of gloves, hats and scarves for when winter came.

Now, Harry knew that clothes were somewhat important, and he didn't mind too much that he had a full wardrobe of clothes he wouldn't wear after he outgrew them, but the amount of toys they had bought him was ridiculous. He could understand if they had purchased five or so things for him to play with. However, he thought they were going totally onboard when they had bought him a whole chest of toys. To his two-year-old toddler side, he was in heaven, but with his seventeen-year-old side, he was rather uncomfortable with how much Lucius was spending on him. He didn't even know if he was going to play with all of them, and it might just end up as a waste of money.

Upon entering Quality Quidditch Supplies, he was ecstatic to find out that they were buying him a broom. Yes, it was most likely going to be a toddler broom, but still, a broom! He knew he was going to have a blast playing on it, and could only grin as he saw his mom sigh in exasperation at his excitement. And though Lucius hid it well, Harry could tell that Lucius was quite pleased with Harry's reaction to the broom; it had been Lucius' idea, after all.

They ended the day with a meal at a restaurant Harry didn't bother to remember the name of; he was far more concerned with the pasta plate he had eaten from. They had let Harry eat as much as he wanted and even let him have treacle tart for dessert! (No matter how old he got, treacle tart would always be his favorite. And that was saying something, costing the fact that Mrs. Wesley was a wicked baker.)

As the three of them made their way to the Leaky Cauldron to return to Hogwarts, Harry was once again being carried on Lucius' hip. It appeared as though the Malfoy heir had grown fond of carrying Harry around, for every modem Lily offered to carry him, the blonde would slightly tighten his hold on Harry, stating that he was fine carrying Harry. Harry didn't mind though, not liked thought he would. He felt safe in the Malfoy heir's strong, warm arms, and appreciated the effort the blonde made to make him feel content and secure.

And so, as Harry and Lucius were about to be transported back to Hogwarts through the floo, Harry looked up at Lucius with a sleepy smile.

"Tank 'ou," Harry said, yawning a little as he cuddled into Lucius' arms and fell asleep. He felt Lucius hum in acknowledgement as he drifted off. He didn't think he would have any nightmares tonight.

0o0-0o0-0o0

And voila! A new chappie for you all (that took way longer than it should have), all nice, lovey and sighted horror filled. I think I originally planned for this to be a two-parter, but I decided that, since there was such depressing material in here, I'd make it a slightly longer chapter filled with both good and bad emotions.

I do apologize for the very long absence (again), but as I think I said the last chapter, school really is a doozy, what with all the SAT and ACT prep courses and tests as well as normal tests and papers and AP testing to boot. Though now that it's getting closer to school letting out, I will do my darnedest to try and update more often.

I once agin thank all of those who still actually like this story and have followed/favorited it. Your support is really grand, so thanks!


	8. Chapter 8

Legend

"Speaking"

'Thoughts'

"-Parselmouth-"

Dreams/Nightmares

Warnings: As you already know, this story is different than canon. Thus, I will be changing it as I please, making surprising and maybe upsetting changes Harry's years at Hogwarts.

Originally I wasn't planning on posting this today- I know it's been forever and a half since I updated- but it is Harry Potter's Birthday, so I thought I'd update it~

On that lovely note, I've come to realize that it would be lovely to have a Beta, if anyone's interested.

Now, Onwards with the Story!

**P.S.: I apologize if this set-up looks weird; I couldn't upload this doc the normal way so I had to use copy-'n-paste (I'm on a tablet here). So please forgive me! **

0o0-0o0-0o0

When Lucius and Lily had arrived at Hogwarts, they had reported their findings to the Headmaster. It was the first time Lucius had ever seen the Headmaster without that blasted twinkle in his eyes. It wasn't something pleasant to think about, after all. Dumbledore had given them a tired smile before inquiring into the more pleasant aspects of the Diagon Alley trip. The two of them did, and the elderly man had chuckled with amusement at Lily's thoughts about Harry having his own broom. The Headmaster had then sent them off to their respective dorms, it being past 8 o'clock and Harry needed to be put to bed. Lucius had walked Lily to the Entrance Hall- it being proper manners to treat a woman that way, Muggleborn or not- where he bid her a good evening before making his way back to the dungeons.

Now that Lucius was no longer carrying young Harry, he felt a wave of anger coursing through him. Though he didn't know the small child all too well, having only known him for a few days, he was simmering with rage at the thought of the boy being abused in any way. He was a child, for Merlin's sake, a small, fragile child who was treated horrendously at the hands of his previous care-takers. Children were precious in the Wizarding World, and for people to have treated Harry in such a way that their conversations would elicit such a reaction...

'If I were to ever meet them...' Lucius thought to himself, entering the Slytherin Commons Room. The other Slytherins in the room had looked at him upon his arrival with curious glances, but he paid them no heed. He needed to write a letter to his father about what had occurred today.

'It would probably be best to inform Selena as well.' Lucius thought, sitting down at his desk as he pulled out his Quill to write.

0o0-0o0-0o0

Lily was carrying the slumbering Harry into his crib in James' room, the young child having fallen asleep before they had even arrived back at Hogwarts. She looked down at the young child in her arms, smiling softly as she spelled him into a green onesie before tucking him in and turning off the light. She spun her wand in a full clockwise circle and a little light was on the counter by Harry; it was small enough not to wake him up, but bright enough to reassure him if he did.

Closing the door to James' room, she made her way into room to grab her book bag and making her way to the mini commons area that they shared. Since it was a Saturday night, she could've gone over to the Gryffindor Commons Room, but really, after today's experiences, she decided that she would rather stay and get the homework out of the way.

It was about an hour later, and Lily was putting the finishing touches on her Transfiguration Essay (she had already finished the Potions Essay due on Monday) when she heard the door to the dorm open. Finishing her line, she looked up to see James come in with a grin on his face.

"Hey Lils," James greeted in a quiet voice as he say down on the chair by the fireplace, "How's Harry?"

"He's been asleep for over an hour," Lily replied.

"Today tucker him out?" James asked cheerfully.

"In more ways than one," Lily replied, becoming solemn. James noted this, and his grin fell away into a small frown.

"What happened? Did something go wrong? Did Malfoy do something?" James started asking, starting to work himself into a little frenzy.

"No, James, it wasn't Malfoy's fault. But yes, something happened with Harry today." Lily paused, sighing as she brought up the memories that had been pushed to the back of her mind.

"It started today when Harry accidentally grabbed one of the goblins' spears and cut his hand open." Lily watched the color leave James' face as he heard that, and she nodded in sympathy. "Thankfully, the goblins noticed and lead us to a separate room so that a Healer could attend to it. That opened a can of worms though, because we found that Harry couldn't feel the pain. Normal children would have been bawling, but Harry wasn't. Malfoy and I were discussing that and found that Harry has some...issues that most likely stemmed from his previous care-takers." James' face was now grim, and Lily was sure hers matched his pretty well.

"What are these 'issues' you're talking about?" He asked, and Lily was sure this was the most serious she had ever seen the raven-haired male for all the time that she had known him.

"His care-takers made him believe he was a freak, I think." Lily stated, and she saw James' eyes narrow in anger. "This was brought about while Malfoy and I were talking about the reasons he could not be feeling the pain and somewhere along the way there must've been a trigger word that sent him into an emotional lock-down."

"Was there anything else?" James asked, his voice low. Lily didn't respond right away, giving James his answer. "Lily, was there anything else wrong with Harry?"

"Since Harry was being treated for his hand, we also asked the goblin healer, Smoothfang, to do a full body scan on Harry to see what else may be wrong. He agreed upon hearing that Harry couldn't feel the cut from the spear. The results even disturbed Smoothfang; according to him, Harry's suffering from malnutrition, a slight crack in his skull, badly healed fractures and breaks, consistent night terrors and an eye disease that will, if it's not treated, will cause him to be blind by the time he's thirty."

Lily watched as James' face became paler and paler as she repeated what the goblin healer had told them.

"Dear Merlin," James whispered, sinking into the chair. He ran a hand through his hair, clamping down on it as anger surfaced. "How could they do that to him? He's a child! He's so small and gentle! It's obvious that Harry grew up with muggles; children are so valuable in the Wizarding World that what happened to Harry wouldn't have happened." Sirius' situation flashed through his mind, but he pushed it away in order to concentrate on Harry. He looked up at Lily with dulled eyes, eyes that shouldn't be on a seventeen-year-old.

"What is being done to help Harry?" James asked, running his hand through his hair again.

"Healer Smoothfang fixed the badly healed fractures and breaks, the slight crack in his head and the eye disease. He also is sending over potions to help cure his nightmares, the potion being non-addictive." Lily explained, covering a yawn with an ink-stained hand.

"Are they actually going to send the potions to Hogwarts?" James asked. While the Potters respected goblins more than most Pureblood families, they were still cautious when dealing with the goblins of Gringotts. After all, goblins don't trust human witches and wizards very well. He was surprised, though, when Lily smiled at his question.

"Malfoy asked the same question, actually," Lily replied, grinning at James' reaction. "He's taking Harry's well-being quite seriously; he didn't even bat an eye when Healer Smoothfang said it would cost forty five galleons to heal Harry and pay for the potions." Lily stopped as she saw a strange look on James' face.

"What's wrong James? I mean, forty five galleons is quite a bit of money, but-"

"That's not it Lils," James replied, scratching his cheek. "Well, maybe it is it."

"What on Earth are you talking about James?" Lily asked, rather confused at to what James was talking about.

"Normally, the goblins would charge quite a bit more than forty five galleons for medical treatment like that," James explained, smiling a bit a Lily's surprise. "Knowing the goblins, it probably should have cost a lot."

"I wonder why they reduced the price." Lily mused, placing her cheek in her hand as she thought about it.

"It is rather odd, considering that Malfoy was the one paying for it," James said, "You would think the goblins would take the opportunity to charge more, given how much money the Malfoy's possess."

"That'll have to be something we discuss with Malfoy, possibly tomorrow," Lily suggested, again using her hand to cover another yawn.

"It looks like Harry's not the only one who's had a long day today." James teased with a wry grin. Lily rolled her eyes but laughed anyways.

"I think I'm going to head in early," Lily said, standing up from the couch where she had been working. She stretched, having sat there for well over an hour. "Harry's already tucked in, James. I put him to bed when I got back from Diagon Alley."

"I'll do my best not to wake him up, then," James said, smiling at his fellow Gryffindor. "I'll see you tomorrow Lils."

"Good night to you too James," Lily said, picking up her bag and heading into her room. James, still sitting in the chair by the fire heard the click of Lily's door as it shut, leaving him in complete silence.

James stayed there for a while, not willing to get up and go to bed quite yet. He had too much running through his head right now. He just couldn't get it through his head how people could abuse a child in their care like that. James knew that Sirius had had it rough with his parents, but from what Sirius had told him it was more verbal than physical. For all the crap they put him through, Sirius' parents would probably never hurt him in the way that Harry was.

'They'd probably be insulted that someone assumed they'd do such a thing,' James thought wryly to himself.

He sat there for a little while longer, staring at the fire as he let his thoughts just flow. After a while, though, he found himself starting to yawn and decided that he should probably get to bed soon; it was almost midnight.

Turning off the lights to the Commons Area, James quietly entered his room, closing the door behind him. he silently thanked Lily for the night-light charm she had set up; it made it easier for him to get ready for bed. He went about his business silently, stopping to gaze at Harry ever so often as the small toddler slept peacefully.

James slipped in between the cool covers of his bed and took off his glasses, placing them on the nightstand next to his wand. He closed his eyes, trying to relax his body and fall asleep. Twenty minutes later, James was still awake. He sat up, looking at Harry's crib. James stared at it for a little while before getting out of bed with a sigh. Going over to the crib, he gently picked up the sleeping child before curling back up into bed.

Sighing contently, he closed his eyes as he fell asleep, smiling as he felt Harry cuddle into his chest for warmth.

0o0-0o0-0o0

And there's the next chappie! Mostly the thoughts of James and Lucius sprinkled with Lily and a little Dumbledore. Although the story didn't move on, I thought it too important to have this chapter where they're expressing their feelings at the revelation of Harry's treatment.

I hope you look forward to the next one, 'cause I'm hoping to get it out sooner than these past couple of chappies.

P.S. Kudos to avengerbrink: I absolutely cracked up when you threatened to turn me into a baby and send me to the Dursley's. I still laugh everytime I think about it.


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